Concentrate on This!
An in depth look at ADHD
November 9th, 2004
By Sal Roach
ADHD. Every parent with a hyperactive child knows about this, and it is becoming
a favorite catch word for people who can’t seem to pay attention to one thing
for very long.
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is a chemical reaction to a lack of
proper activity in the frontal lobe of the brain that causes people not to be
able to concentrate on one thing, causing frustrations and feelings of being
a social outcast.
This syndrome usually occurs in children and is often times diagnosed with
unnecessary drugs, which can cause even more problems for the child.
You need to know what it is that you are dealing with before you start
medication.
There are three main symptoms of ADHD: Hyperactivity, acting on impulse without
thinking, and lack of concentration. Usually they develop in that order
before the age of 7. The problem is that if children these days show any of
these symptoms, they are automatically castigated to being an ADHD child,
when they may in fact be a normal kid with an active imagination.
To diagnose a child with this condition, multiple signs of these characteristics
must be prevalent in a pattern that crosses over into several situations,
ranging from home environment, to social settings to school. Again, every child
goes through this in some regard, but it is up to the parent to monitor their
child’s behavior to make sure there is not a common theme of disorder
running through their lives.
The question arises that a child should be able to do as they please in order
to feed their imagination. While this may be true, the effects of ADHD
untreated later on in life could cause people to drift aimlessly without
directions instead of achieving planned out long term goals, which as well
all know, is very important for success later in life.
Although the exact causes of ADHD are not precisely known, it is generally
believed to be a genetic trait passed down to the child. While there are
some situations where a child will develop ADHD to counteract a problem at
home, the large amount of cases are genetic problems, and can therefore be
diagnosed and treated.
Parents who smoke and drink when they are pregnant, as well as second hand
smoke, has been found to inhibit early frontal lobe growth, which can cause
genetic malfunctions in the ability to have a clear thought.
You should also be watching what you feed your child. Studies by the
National Institute of Health found that sugars and food additives at an early
age can lead to extreme hyperactivity, which is a gateway to ADHD.
As for medications, that is a personal choice for each parent, and should
be carefully thought of before prescribing for your children. Usually, if
the problem is discovered early enough, it can be worked out with natural
methods that involve time and some difficult moments, but there are never
side effects from those.
Many of the drugs that combat ADHD are filled with a stimulant that works
to combat the child’s natural hyperactivity. The wrong dosage can
literally string your child out on speed, so be careful.
Methods such as developing a daily schedule so that the child, and in many
cases, the adults, will help them reach short term goals and teach them
how to follow directions, which is one of the hardest things for someone
with ADHD to do. Make sure the child writes down what the assignment is
in school. It will help them develop memory skills that are many times
absent.
Adults who are claiming to have ADHD are mostly wrong. This MUST be
developed at an early stage in life. IF you are experiencing these symptoms
as an adult, it’s probably something else, not a genetic disorder.
As with most things, finding this early on can help to make it easier
for your child. In classroom with 30 plus children all demanding the
teacher’s attention, there is often little time to watch each child
and diagnose their actions. Parents should be watching the patterns of
their children for this syndrome, because if not caught early, it could
greatly hamper a person’s ability to develop their natural talents.
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